The World Economic Forum USA is an independent non-profit organization committed to improving the state of the world by engaging industry leaders in partnerships to shape global, regional and industry agendas.
Incorporated as a non-profit business league and based in New York, the World Economic Forum USA is impartial and not-for-profit; it is tied to no political, partisan or national interests. It is the North American affiliate of the World Economic Forum, a non-profit Foundation headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, under the supervision of the Swiss Federal Government.
The World Economic Forum USA's New York office acts as the headquarters for various industries within the Centre for Business Engagement that are based in New York, as well as for the Foundation's North America and Latin America activities.
World Economic Forum USA Leadership Team
Officers
Jean-Pierre Rosso, ChairmanJean-Pierre Rosso, Chairman
Diploma in Civil Engineering, Ecole Polytechnique de Lausanne, Switzerland; Master's degree in Business Administration, Wharton School, Univ. of Pennsylvania.
1969, began career, Honeywell France; advanced from positions of finance and administrative manager, to Director of Honeywell's Africa business, and then Director of sales operations for Honeywell-Bull, France; 1975, left Honeywell to become President and CEO, Rossignol Ski Company; 1981, returned to Honeywell; 1981-82, Vice-President, Business Development and Operations, Honeywell Europe; 1983-84, Vice-President and General Manager, Honeywell Medical Electronics Division; 1985-86, Group Vice-President, Information Systems International; 1987-91, President, Honeywell Europe; 1992-94, President, worldwide Home and Building Control business, Honeywell; 1994, joined Case Corporation as President and CEO; 1996, elected Chairman; 1999, appointed Chairman and CEO when Case Corporation and New Holland merged to become CNH; 1994-2000, CEO, Case Corporation and CNH and 1996-2004, Chairman of the Board
Sarita Nayyar, Managing Director, Head of Consumer Industries
Sarita Nayyar, Managing Director
BA (Hons) in Economics, St. Stephen’s College, University of Delhi; Master’s in Management, Indian Institute of Management, Ahemdabad; MBA with distinction, University of Michigan.
Formerly: with Tata Exports, India; 18 years with Kraft Foods, including various business and marketing roles, innovation and new product development, and as Senior Vice-President and General Manager, large business unit. Since 2007, with World Economic Forum USA: manages USA operations, including finance, accounting, human resources and legal; as Head of Consumer Industry, leads global partnerships with companies in consumer industries; manages initiatives on critical global issues such as sustainable consumption, food security (New Vision for Agriculture and Grow Africa) and climate change. Former Member of the Board, ASCENT, a national non-profit organization for professional development and career advancement of multicultural women.
John Moavenzadeh, Senior Director, Head of Sustainable Mobility & StrategyJohn Moavenzadeh, Senior Director, Head of Mobility Industries
1989, BS in Mechanical Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University; 1992, MSE in Mechanical Engineering, University of Michigan; 1996, Master's in Public Policy, Harvard University.
Since 1997, Licensed Professional Engineer, USA. 1990-1994, Product Design Engineer, Ford Motor Company. 1996-1999, Associate, Booz Allen & Hamilton. 1999-2003, Director, World Economic Forum. 2003-2006, Executive Director, MIT International Motor Vehicle Program. Since 2007, Director, Sustainable Mobility and Strategy; Officer, World Economic Forum USA, responsible for strategy and programme development for the transportation industries.
Senior Directors
Marisol Argueta, Senior Director, Head of Latin AmericaMarisol Argueta, Senior Director, Head of Latin America
Lawyer and Career Ambassador: JD Universidad Dr. Jose Matias Delgado, El Salvador; Postgraduate degree in Diplomatic Studies, University of Oxford, UK (Distinction). Specialized Studies in Humanitarian Law, New York University; Program of Instruction for Lawyers, Harvard University. Negotiations, Conflict Resolution and Development, International Peace Academy.
Formerly: Vice President of Interpublix. Minister of Foreign Relations of El Salvador. Alternate Representative of El Salvador to the United Nations, New York; Minister Counsellor, Embassy of El Salvador in Washington DC; General Director of Foreign Policy, Ministry for Foreign Affairs; Senior Adviser to Foreign Minister and National Summits Coordinator. Assistant Professor of Constitutional Law and Political Law. Lecturer and author of articles on international affairs and regional integration. Recipient of National Awards from Mexico, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Peru and Spain, and of recognitions by Academic and Business Institutions.
Giancarlo Bruno, Senior Director, Head of Financial Services IndustryGiancarlo Bruno,
Senior Director, Head of Financial Services Industry – Member of the Management Committee
1992, MSc (Hons) in Economics and Business Management, Università Commerciale L Bocconi, Milan; 1994, Master's in International Management, Wirtschaftsuniversität Wien, Vienna; 2006-08, Senior Fellow, Center for Business and Government, Harvard Kennedy School, Cambridge MA; 2010, Global MA, Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University, Medford MA.
1995, Researcher, Mobilisation and Management of Financial Resources Division, UN Industrial Development Organization, Vienna; 1996, Corporate Finance, Creditanstalt-Bankverein, Milan, Vienna and London; 1998, Financial Engineering, Banque Indosuez, Luxembourg; 2000, Attaché de Direction, Crédit Agricole Indosuez, Geneva; since 2003, with World Economic Forum, Geneva and New York. Member: European Advisory Board, Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy; Member, Advisory Committee, Italia Futura; Honorary Fellow, Foreign Policy Association.
Michael Drexler, Senior Director, Head of Investor IndustriesMichael Drexler, Senior Director, Head of Investor Industries
Post-doctoral fellowship in applied mathematics, Stanford University 1997-98; Doctorate in mathematics (non-linear systems), University of Oxford 1997; MSc in electronic engineering, Technical University at Munich 1994;
Since 2011, Head of Investors Industry (Private Equity, Venture Capital, Hedge Funds, Institutional Investors and Sovereign Wealth Funds), World Economic Forum; 2009-2011, part-time Senior Advisor, Financial Services Industries, World Economic Forum; 2002-2011 at Barclays Capital in various positions, among which: Managing Director and global head of strategy for corporate/investment/private banking, global head of Financial Decision Support, chief of staff to chairman of Barclays plc, Director in Principal Investments; 1998-2002, management consultant at McKinsey, London Office
Nominated a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum in 2010; Deputy Chairman of the Magdalen Society, Oxford; Member of the Global/Industry Agenda Councils on Capital/Investment Flows and Banking & Capital Markets from 2008-2011
Lisa Dreier, Director, Food Security and Development Initiatives
Lisa Dreier, Senior Director, Head Of Food Security And Development Initiatives
2002, Master's in Public Policy, University of California at Berkeley; 2002, Master's in Energy and Resources, University of California at Berkeley; 1989, Bachelor of Arts, Bowdoin College; 1987-88, Exchange Student, Pontifica Universidad Catolica del Ecuador.
1992-97, Senior Development Officer, Environmental Defense Fund; 1998-2002, independant consultant for international development agencies and NGOs in USA, Asia and Latin America; 1990-2002 (periodically), freelance journalist, USA and Asia; 2002-2005, Associate Director, the Earth Institute at Columbia University and Task Force Manager, UN Millennium Project (concurrent positions). 2005-2007, Associate Director, Public-Private Partnerships, World Economic Forum. Since 2007, current position. Expertise in sustainable development, public-private partnerships and business solutions to poverty and hunger.
Alan Marcus, Senior Director, Head of IT and Telecom IndustriesAlan Marcus, Senior Director, Head of Information Technology & Telecommunications Industries
1987 BA/BS in Computer Science/Computer Engineering, Rutgers University, New Jersey, USA,1992 Graduate Degree in Telecommunications Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, California, USA.2001- Ongoing Executive Education, Harvard Business School & Stanford Graduate School of Business.
1987-1990 Various Analyst positions with US Government contractors.1990-1993 Various Engineering positions with 3Com Inc, and Novell Inc, San Jose California1993-2005 Cisco Systems Inc.: Sr. Director, Product and Technology Marketing, San Jose, California & Brussels Belgium; Managing Director Enterprise Markets Asia Pacific, Singapore, Director, Enterprise Marketing, San Jose California, Sr. Manager, Engineering, San Jose California. 2005-2007 Symbol Technologies Inc.: Chief Marketing Officer, New York.Since May 2008 World Economic Forum: Director & Head, Information Technology and Telecommunications Industries.
Paul Smyke, Senior Advisor to the ChairmanPaul Smyke, Senior Director, Head of North America, Special Advisor to the Chairman
BA in Speech Communication, Macalester College; MA in International Relations, Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS).
Experience in higher education, research in Hawaii, several political campaigns. Since 1987, with World Economic Forum: Member of the Executive Board, various functional and geographic responsibilities; since 1998, Senior Adviser to Managing Board, overseeing ties with private and public sectors in US and general institutional outreach. On-air commentator for Swiss TV on US current affairs. 2000-06, Senior Adviser, Swiss House for Advanced Research and Education, Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Directors
Matthew Blake, Director, Financial Services Industries, Head of Banking and Capital Markets Industry
Maha Eltobgy, Director, Investors Industries, Head of Private Investors
Abel Lee, Director, Financial Services Industries, Head of Insurance and Asset Management Industries
Annie Luo, Director, Media Entertainment and Information Industries
Richard McGlone, Director, Deputy Head of Partnership
Silvia Von Gunten, Director, Technology Pioneers, Head of Technology Pioneers Program and North America Membership
Tiffany West, Director, Consumer Industries, Head of Agriculture, Food and Beverage Industry
Contact details:
forumusa@weforum.org 3 East 54th Street, 18th Floor, New York, NY 10022, USA
Tel: +1 212 703-2300
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